Derek's London Fashion Week Diary: Fall 2012

From Stella McCartney's flash mob and Mulberry's starry dinner to a visit to the Prime Minster's house and a private tour of Lucian Freud's show at the National Portraits Gallery, our editor at large, Derek Blasberg, made the most out of his visit to London for fashion week. Here, he shares some of his personal snap shots. Plus see his New York Fashion Week diary.

Derek Blasberg

Derek's London Fashion Week Diary: Fall 2012

My first night in the British capital definitely raised the bar on London Fashion Week. As was already widely reported (including on my blog), which features a video of the festivities), the climax of the evening was a choreographed flash mob dance routine. This was the finale when all the models ended up onstage, just in front of the head table, where Rihanna and Kate Moss were seated.

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Derek Blasberg

Mario Testino and Kate Moss hit the dance floor after the performance, which was just as enthralling.

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The hostess with the mostest: Stella McCartney at the bar.

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Alexa Chung wearing a Stella McCartney dress. Alexa got involved in the act too, being hypnotized by a musician and then levitating on the tips of three swords.

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The model Tati Cotliar, who was at our table, and kept her act in the group performance a secret.

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Alison Mosshart, my date for the evening.

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Shalom Harlow, who ended up catwalking on a series of chairs during the performance, and Blanca, the choreographer of the whole routine.

The actress Gillian Anderson, who I had the good fortune of sitting next to at dinner. For a former top-secret alien investigator, Detective Scully had a fabulous sense of humor.

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Alexa Chung with Downton Abbey’s Lady Mary, whose real name is Michelle Dockery. Because that show has so captivated the fashion world (it was the soundtrack and the inspiration behind Ralph Lauren’s entire show), she was the hottest guest at the Mulberry dinner and constantly being pumped for information.

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My friend Liz Goldwyn backstage at Erdem’s fabulous show in South London.

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Kate Bosworth and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley snuggling at the Burberry show. They are both just impossibly gorgeous.

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Poppy Delevingne on her way into Burberry.

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It’s a quintessential London Fashion Week moment: the lovely Kate Bosworth sprinting past the Prince Albert memorial in Hyde Park on her way into the Burberry show.

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Front row at the Giles show: Kelly Brook and Pixie Geldof. I was seated on the other side of Kelly, who I must confess I wasn’t aware of before the show. Turns out she’s very sweet and an extremely well-endowed bosom, though I think she’s most well known for the latter.

London’s best radio DJ and presenter Nick Grimshaw (far right) with two friends at the Giles show.

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The iconic Kristen McMenemy closing the McQ show. The show, and her appearance as a bride who leads the audience on a walk through an enchanted forest, was unexpected and utterly delightful.

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My new favorite fashion week addition: Meadham Kirchhoff. The show is always insane and festive and fabulous.

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On my last day of shows, I snuck off to the National Portrait Gallery to have a look at the Lucian Freud exhibit. Even better: my friend Alison Mosshart had scored us a tour with Lucian’s daughter, Bella — for sure the best guide ever. The show was sensational. Seventy years of inspiring and provocative work from a certified British icon. This was one of my favorites: A small self-portrait of the artist he did on a hand mirror.

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The ultimate highlight of London Fashion Week, especially for an American like myself, was certainly a visit to 10 Downing Street. Samantha Cameron hosted a cocktail party to discuss Britain’s future in the fashion industry and she proved she knew what she was talking about. Then it was announced that TopShop would continue to sponsor London fashion week for an unprecedented decade by Sir Philip Green. Which is good news for me: That means I’ll be back in my beloved London for at least 20 more seasons!

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